Chernabog
Chernabog (also known as Lord of Darkness in David Show francise) is a giant evil god demon who appears as the only main character and the main antagonist in the "Night on Bald Mountain/Ave Maria" segment of the 1940 Disney animated feature film Fantasia. He is also a primary member of the Disney Villains franchise. He serves as the main antagonist throughout the entire film of Fantasia. He is based on the God of the Night in Slavic mythology. At Walpurgis Night (the Witches' Sabbath), he emerges from the peak of Bald Mountain (in reality Mount Triglav in Slovenia) to summon all of his minions, who dance furiously as he throws them into the mountain's fiery pit. He has been praised as Disney's best representation of pure evil, and as animator Vladimir Tytla's greatest triumph. As a very "raw" representation of evil, he, in his original appearance, is not placed in the context of any real story, and he and his minions' actions are not committed in pursuit of any discernible goal other than general havoc–wreaking and tyranny on all. Some other media has attempted to give his character more concrete context. Background Personality Being the representation of pure evil, Chernabog does not possess a dominant personality like other Disney Villains. However, most material outside of Fantasia depicts him as a ruthless monster, feared by all who encounter him. He is one of the most powerful villains Walt Disney has ever created for that reason. Many of his appearances also show him to be somewhat comedic, as seen in''The Wonderful World of Disney'', and House of Mouse. His power is shown to be incredibly demonic, being able to unleash hellish realms and spirits. While immensely dark, he has managed to become a trademark Disney villain, appearing in numerous material centering the villainous franchise. Inspiration and Design The idea for Chernabog was conceived by German artist Heinrich Kley (who, though he did not officially work at the Disney studio, inspired many of the Disney artists, and whose drawings were collected by Walt Disney), who once sketched a pen and ink drawing of a gigantic demon forcing workers out of a factory by blocking the chimney. Albert Hurter, inspired by this drawing and others like it by Kley, drew various sketches of a huge, winged devil tossing handfuls of souls into a volcano. Hurter's sketches also included studies of his hands as his flailing minions attempt to clamber onto his fingers for safety; this imagery is used in a scene in the final film. After Hurter's initial sketches, Kay Nielsen established the final appearance of him and his world in a series of detailed pastel illustrations, as well as a model sheet for him. He was then created as a real model, to be used as reference by Tytla during animation. Animation :"No one but Tytla could have given Chernabog the odious, predominantly animal mentality which made him so fearsome." -Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston In the film, Chernabog was animated by Vladimir Tytla. Tytla was Ukrainian, and thus had a clear image in his mind of the character of his culture's folklore. Thornton Hee recalled wanting to ask Tytla about something, but finding that the animator's room was in complete darkness save for the fluorescent light under Tytla's drawing, which lit his face in an eerie way as he worked. This unnerved T. Hee enough to compel him to leave without alerting Tytla to his presence at all Appearances ''Fantasia'' The sequence takes place in a mountainous area, in which a village is overlooked by Bald Mountain. The latter's peak is revealed to be Chernabog's wings, which he spreads out as he looks at the village down below. Stretching out his arms, he casts a dark shadow over the village and summons ghosts, including the spirits of hanged criminals (who pass through the noose a second time as they rise from their graves), fallen warriors in the moat and grounds of a ruined castle, and the souls of all who are not buried in sacred ground. The ghosts join together to become a single mass, swirling around Chernabog, who summons fire and demons. As the latter emerge and gather below their master, he grabs a number of them and disdainfully throws them into the fires of Bald Mountain, while his other minions dance on. He then uses flames to create images: first, the flames resemble elegant dancers; then, to his pleasure, they transform into dancing barnyard animals. He then transforms them into blue demons, who dance before him, causing him to grin maliciously. As the dancing continues, it becomes more frantic and chaotic. Harpies fly above the demons, occasionally grabbing them and throwing them into the inferno. The celebration culminates in a blinding flash of fire from the inferno. Chernabog, ready to continue, eagerly leers over his minions, but is interrupted by the sound of bells, which herald the coming of the dawn. Though he initially ignores the sound, the light of the sun forces him and his minions to retreat, and the ghosts return to their resting places. He raises his arms one final time, and closes his wings, protecting himself from the sunlight and becoming the mountain's peak once more. David Show: The Darkness Appears in the game as Lord of Darkness.He was trapped in armor all the time. When he woke up, he called ghosts and haunted the whole world. Dawid had to defeat his servants to get to the volcano where he stands. Later he calls David to fight for death. David challenges him, but the enemy falls, then David himself and the situation are rescued by Doctor Midstein. Then in the cave of crystals the Lord undergoes a transformation that is closer to his final but in human size. David and Doctor Midstein on the speeder defeat him and bring peace in the world. Disney Parks Chernabog makes numerous appearances through the parks in different parades and shows, often as a major element of a villain float. Chernabog appears during the final mission of Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom. In this attraction, Hades plots to rule the Magic Kingdom by assembling various Disney Villains. However, Merlin, several Disney heroes, and park guests fight against them and win. At one point, Hades summons Chernabog (who he calls "his #1 guy") to fight the guests. Even still, he is defeated and becomes imprisoned in the crystal of the Magic Kingdom along with the other villains. In Fantasmic!, Chernabog is one of the villains summoned by The Evil Queen to do away with Mickey and destroy his imagination. Clips from Night on Bald Mountain are shown on water screens, indicating that he is summoning a host of ghouls against Mickey and is defeated with all the villains when Mickey defeats the dragon Maleficent . In World of Color, Chernabog plays a role and brings forth the Colors of Fear. Here he conjures up the element of fire in contrast to water. He is accompanied by the Firebird and Doctor Facilier. In SpectroMagic, Chernabog appears in his Bald Mountain float rising out, like he did in the film, with red lights. In the Disneyland Paris version of the Storybook Land Canal Boats, Chernabog appears in a scene based on the village from Night on Bald Mountain, though he is perched atop a ruined castle tower instead of the peak. Trivia *The words in his name, "cherna" and "bog", mean "black" and "god" in Slavic languages. *In the Slavic myths Chernabog (named Chernobog) is a black god of darkness who contrasts with Belobog, the white god of light and the two are in eternal conflit.This could explain Chernabog's fear of light. Chernabog and Belobog are similar to Satan and God and Ra and Apep *In the intro to the 50 Years of Disney TV special, despite terrifying Mickey half to death, Chernabog is shown to be fearful of and obedient to former CEO Michael Eisner. *Chernabog makes cameo appearances in the DC Comics story Kingdom Come in a villain bar and in a climactic battle. *Chernabog was referred to as "Yen Sid" in the pencil tests for Fantasia. But "Yen Sid" was used as the name of Mickey's magic master in The Sorcerer's Apprentice scene in the film, and the animation of both characters were supervised by Tytla. *Chernabog is unusual in that he has no other purpose other than to be evil. He is not interested in conquest. *Chernabog is the first example of a protagonist villain in a film, as there is not a visible hero or heroine present and he appears in the majority of his appearance. *Walt Disney called Chernabog "The Devil, himself". *The villains in Fantasmic change according to the versions and parks. Chernabog alongside his minions, Maleficent, Ursula, the Evil Queen, and the Magic Mirror are the only villains who appear in all versions. And in every version just they appear in the climax (except in Disney's Hollywood Studios version which Frollo ,Cruella, and Scar appear too). *Chernabog, Maleficent, the Horned King, and Ronno are the only Disney Villains to have horns. Coincidentally the three firsts are often considered the three scariest Disney Villains by fans. Category:Villains Category:Demons Category:Magic Users Category:Characters Category:Kings Category:Males Category:Monsters Category:Giants Category:European characters Category:Slavic characters